Controversial Arts District Complex Begins Work

After successfully navigating an unanticipated level of neighborhood resistance, work is finally getting underway on another large mixed-use development in Downtown Los Angeles' burgeoning Arts District.

Yesterday, while walking the neighborhood with Downtown icon Brigham Yen, a small crew was spotted prepping the dirt lot at 950 East Third Street for construction.  The six-acre site, which is being developed in tandem by Associated Estates Realty and Legendary Development, will eventually birth a series of five-and-six-story buildings containing 472 apartments and 21,000 square feet of retail space.

The design of the 400,000-square-foot complex, crafted by Kava Massih Architects, is intended to match the existing feel and aesthetics of the Arts District.  Renderings indicate that the project would include numerous murals, as well as industrial-themed exterior finishes with metal accents.

A Blurry First Look at the Arts District's 950 Third

Image credit: CityGro.ws

Thanks to CityGrows, take a first look at 950 Third, the mixed-use development slated for the vacant lot adjacent to SCI-Arc.  The low-rise project - originally slated to break ground this summer - is being developed by a team consisting of Ohio-based Associated Estates Realty and Glendale-based Legendary Development.  Renderings from Kava Massih Architects portray multiple brick-clad structures, standing between five and six stories in height.  Residential buildings would contain a total of 472 apartments, centered around a 922-vehicle parking garage.  The developers intend to mitigate the project's sprawling footprint by creating a new road through the the property.

Although the empty, 5.6-acre lot represents a major hole in the northern Arts District, some residents have expressed discontent with the the proposed residential-retail development.  In an open letter to City Councilman Jose Huizar, CityGrows creator Stephen Corwin blasted the project's design as "soulless....cheap and uninviting."  He further notes that the project's copious parking accommodations - nearly double what is required by code - run counter to City Hall's effort to build a more walkable, sustainable Los Angeles.

Past development schemes at 950 East 3rd Street have also been met with criticism.  Nearly a decade ago, Downtown-based Meruelo Maddux Properties (since rebranded as EVOQ Properties) proposed two 40-story condo towers for the lot.  Arts District residents staunchly opposed that plan, which was deemed to be out of character with the surrounding neighborhood.  Legendary Development experienced similar difficulties with their first attempt at the project two years ago, producing a design that was described to the Downtown News as "banal [and] boring."